Said Seyam

Said Seyam (22 July 1959-15 January 2009) was the Minister of the Interior of Palestine from 2006 to 2009 in a government led by Hamas. Seyam was killed during Operation Cast Lead by Israel in 2009.

Biography
Said Seyam was born on 22 July 1959 in al-Shati refugee camp in Gaza Strip to a Palestinian family that originated from the village of al-Jura, near Ascalon (Ashkelon, Israel). Seyam gained a diploma in maths and sciences at Al-Quds Open University and held a job at many United Nations-run schools until 2003. From 1987 to 1991 he was arrested four times during the First Intifada, and in 1995 he was arrested by the Fatah-dominated Preventive Security Service (PSS) after returning from exile in Lebanon. He was a pioneer of Qassam rocket and mortar attacks on Israel, and he became a member of the Hamas terrorist group. Seyam was appointed as the Minister of the Interior of the Palestinian Authority in 2006 when the Hamas took over in an election, and was therefore in charge of 13,000 policemen and security forces.

On 15 January 2009, Said Seyam was killed in an air raid on his brother's rented house in Jabalia, alongside his son, brother, Interior Minister Security Director Saleh Abu Sharkh, and local Hamas militia commander Mahmoud Abu Watfah. Hamas said that his blood would be fuel for the coming victory against Israel.